Down the Rabbit Hole

The laboratory I work in has plenty of instruments that help us characterise and identify microorganisms causing diseases in patients. One of my current projects is to validate an instrument called "matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometer" (MALDI-TOF-MS) in identifying members of the Mycobacterium  species. Many of these organisms are opportunistic, meaning they only cause illnesses in people whose immune systems are not strong enough to fight infections. Mycobacterium leprae  is known for causing leprosy, but we cannot grow this bacterium in culture media, so we cannot isolate it. Mycobacterium tuberculosis  complex, on the other hand, is a group of several species of Mycobacterium  that causes tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a disease that killed 1.6 million people in 2021 alone. It is a leading cause of death globally, second only to COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Identifying the Mycobacterium species that has infected a p...

I've read the 2021 article written by David Betts, Randolph Gordon, Claire Boozer Cruse, and Alison Muckle Egizi entitled " The future of public health ". It says that there are six mutually reinforcing dimensions in the future of public health; among which are health equity, the robustness and responsiveness of the workforce, a shared value proposition, shared real-time data, funding towards the promotion of disease prevention and wellness promotion, and ecosystem of public health laboratories that have a universally correct data. While listening to the discussions during the annual California Association of Public Health Laboratory Directors (CAPHLD) meeting, I was blown away by the technical advances that had occurred and what the state's public health laboratories could do in such a short amount of time and with limited resources. I also became under the impression that the future of public health has arrived. View this post on Instagram A p...

What a difference a year makes! Last year, Anna and I brought the wee one to the Three Nunns pumpkin patch; this was his first pumpkin patch visit ever (for us, too, by the way)! I carried him in his toddler carrier, or I let him toddle along the pumpkin farm, or I chased him through a corn maze. Overall, he had fun during last year's trip to the pumpkin patch. Because he enjoyed it, I decided to bring him to the same pumpkin patch, but with Daddy and Mommy this time. We didn't stay as long in it as last year, however, because Mommy had a dental appointment on the same afternoon. No biggie; it was still a fun trip to the great outdoors. Once we got there, I saw noticeable differences between our visits. One, we didn't need either stroller or toddler carrier anymore. He was more balanced and had higher stamina for walking. Two, he was more interested in walking along the pumpkin patch and rearranging the pumpkins, though he did pick two small ones for us to buy. Three, he w...

Solvang  is known as the Danish capital of America. During our first trip there, Mommy, Daddy, and I ate Danish pastries, explored replicas of Danish landmarks and buildings, visited museums, and explored the city by horse carriage. That was seven years ago. Anna was not with us during that trip because she was in the Philippines. So this year, I kept looking for a chance to bring her there. That opportunity arrived on Columbus Day (Indigenous Peoples' Day) weekend. Of course, we must bring the wee one (also going there for the first time, but fast becoming an expert on long drives), so planning this 350-ish mile trip required some thought. Here, I share six sites or activities we decided we couldn't miss, mainly since we brought a toddler. Solvang Trolley This was definitely the highlight of my first trip. And my son enjoyed his first horse carriage ride on Mackinac Island , so I knew it was a must-do for us in Solvang. The trolley ride was a 25-minute trip around the city. T...

"Grandparents can be very special resources. Just being close to them reassures a child, without words, about change and continuity, about what went before and what will come after."     –Fred Rogers I was not born early enough to have lots of memories with my grandfathers. However, I had the honour of spending time with my grandmothers. They did not give away cookies, mind you, but they loved to feed me, my siblings, and my cousins with chicken sandwiches, pupur, and bulanglang . Both of them enjoyed telling us what it was like for them back in the day (I compiled some on this blog). I particularly enjoyed going with them when they visited their friends. It's that sense of solid family roots that I wish to impart to my son. And that is why I am always happy to see him grow up with my parents constantly in his life. He may be a toddler, but my family's culture—thanks to how my parents parent my siblings and me—will hopefully be instilled in him and strongly influence ...

There's a recession looming; the Fed has steadily been raising interest rates to temper inflation; the demand for hybrid vehicles is driven by the high fuel prices and supply chain issues. It is definitely NOT the ideal time to buy a new vehicle. My timing, therefore, is not the best. But because the car I've been driving, a 2007 Mercedes Benz C230 , has started showing signs of ageing, my parents and I decided that we need to get a new vehicle. I wish I could have held on a bit longer and waited for vehicle prices to go down (as supply eased), but I couldn't handle the risk of driving a faulty vehicle with my son as my passenger.  And so the search for a new vehicle began. Based on my experience, I'm writing down five tips to snag the car you've been dreaming about in a sellers' market. #1 Determine your credit score. This may not be universally applicable. For instance, I didn't have a "credit score" when I was buying my first car in the Philippi...

"Duty, Honour, Country"... They are your rallying point to build courage when courage seems to fail, to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith, to create hope when hope becomes forlorn. – General Douglas MacArthur, 1962 Back when I was studying at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, I kept seeing these three words on the university's bluebooks. Three short words that remind students not to cheat during their examinations. I didn't know where the phrase originated until I read an article featuring General Douglas MacArthur's farewell speech in West Point; if I'm not mistaken, this article was in an old issue of National Geographic. The three words resonated in my head once again when I learned that Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom had died on September 8th this year, at 96 years old. She gave a sense of continuity and stability to her realms; she was an image of unity and national identity. The Royal Family boosted the moral...

Sometimes it’s not in our power to choose just what we keep and what we lose. And those who can’t see beyond the cost should consider this tale and what was lost. It ought to sway even a doubting Thomas: Better to lose your purse and keep your promise!” - Robert Browning, "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" A glockenspiel clock is a mechanical clock that, during certain times of the day, showcases a set of figurines that reenact scenes from a fairy tale while bells (e.g., carillon) play some really nice, soothing music. When I was in Switzerland , I was determined to see one; only to learn that I was in the wrong country.  (The Rathaus-Glockenspiel, which I saw on the telly when I was a kid, is located in Germany.) Seven years after my Swiss adventure, I found myself in a German settlement in Michigan called Frankenmuth. The city's vibe reminded me of  Solvang, CA  because of the touristy feel and the architecture. While checking out the Bavarian Inn, I learned that there'...

Daddy and I decided that it would be much better for us if either of us drove rather than Ninang Trining (we're more experienced with long drives than her... and driving with a baby too). It's supposed to be a four-hour non-stop trip north from Troy to St Ignace but I opted to have a few stops along the way so we could all stretch our legs and allow my son some wiggle time and allow for diaper changes. I estimated that our trip would be about six hours long with these breaks. Naturally, my first order of business was to install my son's Clek Foonf into Ninang Trining's SUV. It was an easy installation because I'm already used to doing seatbelt installations and the lock-off mechanism of the Foonf is very convenient. I didn't expect that each time my son had to go on it, I had to check if the seatbelt was still in place. With three people riding in the same row, detaching the wrong seatbelt is easy. View this post on Instagram A post shar...

During my family's trip to Michigan, we had the opportunity to visit Mackinac Island, one of the USA's "summer colonies" that have what Filipinos call  bahay bakasyunan . Mackinac Island is found where Lake Huron and Lake Michigan meet (at the Straits of Mackinac). These lakes are members of the Laurentian Great Lakes. Ninang Trining really wanted us to see Mackinac Island and after a day of touring the island, I can understand why. It is steeped in history pre-dating the existence of the USA, has beautiful architecture and landscapes, and provides a glimpse at what life must be like when motor vehicles haven't dominated the roads. The first European settlers were fur traders and Catholic missionaries. In this way, the Europeans built strong relationships with the indigenous peoples who arrived on the island before the Europeans did. Back in 18th century, the French and the British colonials empires were vying for territory; thus, both empires built forts. Fort Ma...

Tull Lake is a man-made lake in the White Lake Charter Township in Michigan. A day after Ninang Trining's birthday , we drove over to visit Kuya Lemuel and Ate Adora. They have a house by this lake and invited us Californians over to experience riding a pontoon around the lake. Their house is a back split-level home. From the front, the house seemed to have one level. However, the backyard is sloping, with outdoor stairs from the deck leading to the lake on one side, and a lower level visible on another. The deck is equipped with lounge chairs. Mommy certainly had a field day relaxing on the deck. The backyard was huge! My son found a patch of garden soil very interesting and spent a good hour there. He had fun putting soil into a toy bus that we discovered during our exploration of the backyard. In the process, he also smeared soil all over his face and clothes; but no matter because he had such a wonderful time playing. The highlight of our visit was the boat ride around Tull Lak...

On COVID-19 's third summer, I opted to bring my son along to my aunt's 80th birthday party. Since the party was in Michigan, we had to fly (we could have driven across the continental USA, but that's way too long for a toddler). And I have learned a thing or two about flying with a toddler. Here I share what I think are the top 12 things to bring when travelling with a toddler by plane. Car seat, travel cart, and gate-check bag For this trip, I opted to take the Clek Foonf over the Diono Radian 3QXT  because the Foonf has adjustable recline settings in its rear-facing mode. I was a bit concerned that he'll find the Radian too upright in the Toyota Highlander we would be using while in Michigan. He was not comfortable riding in the Radian installed in a Toyota Prius, most likely because of the steep angle, and so I decided that having recline angle options would be better. Due to space constraints and the challenges of multiple installations in such a short amount of ti...